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Feeling 'extremely vulnerable,' ex-bus driver takes five months to recover


Y2Julio

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I come from a family of MTA bus drivers and have friends whose father's work for the MTA. I can't imagine ANY of them being traumatized because someone spit on them. The idea of it is ridiculous and the papers even reported some guys only take off because they can. It's expected and worse stuff can and does happen. If you can't be prepared for things like that, you don't belong in that job field. This is New York City. Crap happens here all the time. No one's going to hold you by the hand. And FYI you can't really tell me what I can say and what I can't since I'm allowed to have something called an opinion. Were you even raised in New York City?

 

Just because being subjected to any type of assault is "expected," that doesn't make it any easier to deal with. Is a B/O supposed to take comfort in the fact that being showered in degenerate disease is a job expectation? I've yet to see a vacancy notice that listed one of the responsibilities as "Withstand various assaults, including, but not limited to, being spit on by passengers; being physically threatened and/or assaulted with deadly weapons, and coping with these various incidents without taking time off from work or complaining."

 

You're right: you are entitled to an opinion. However, your opinions that portray MTA workers as overly-sensative and system-milking whiners are not necessary, not true and certainly welcome here. Asking why that amount of time off is necessary for some people is much different than crassly accusing a victim of flying phlegm or some other form of assault of looking for sympathy and secretly enjoying the event. That's essentially what you're implying.

 

And what the hell difference does where I was raised make when it comes to the topic at hand? Is the saliva cleaner up here in Connecticut, or do you think that assaults just never happen up here or what was your point with that statement? I'm not originally from New York, but that doesn't mean that I've lived a sheltered life, that I never saw a movie or tv show in which a violent crime was part of the premise, that I never read or saw the news until I came here or even that I've never been to NYC before. Some guy just shot himself and then was fired at by a police officer this past Sunday, a mile from my house, my former next-door neighbors had a spouse-abusing husband who was arrested multiple times and an ex of mine was sexually assaulted when she was 16.

 

Should that shit have been expected as well? Maybe the girl wouldn't have twice attempted suicide had that been explained to her.

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The person who spits is a moron who needs help because if a bus driver is a problem to you, then, well, you need to reorganize your priorities.

 

As for taking five months off... I think far worse things can happen that can mentally scar you... but you can't pause your life. You have to try and move on, otherwise, that person wins.

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As for taking five months off... I think far worse things can happen that can mentally scar you... but you can't pause your life. You have to try and move on, otherwise, that person wins.

 

The Six has spoken! The ultimate revenge is showing your adversaries that you've come back stronger then ever before!

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If you can't come to terms with the risks, don't take the job.

 

And what makes a bus driver more special than any other worker? Do cops take time off? Do teachers? Do retail workers?

 

Bus Operators are more special because we have passengers, pedestrians, and motorists lives at stake. We control vehicles that can do a lot of damage on a street. And lastly because we have rules and laws that dictate our on and off duty lives called 19A, DOT, etc. We are judged by our agency that despises us and a public that knows better then us. Yet in all of this we show up somewhat on time daily, rain or snow, sunny or cold,to bring you to work, play, whatever. The Police eventually show up, the teachers work a lot less then us, but us, we are the life blood that continues to flow through out this city 24/7/365.

 

 

And yes, police and teachers take time. I do not know any retail people, but I wil try to find out what they do. As for coming to terms with the risks, I am content, but lets see how I am doing after I am spit on.

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True and I never said they should be subjected but that can happen anywhere to anyone. To take off a handful of days for it is ridiculous. And it's to be expected that people would do such a thing. Respect is a fading concept in any public environment. If you can't come to terms with the risks, don't take the job.

 

And what makes a bus driver more special than any other worker? Do cops take time off? Do teachers? Do retail workers?

 

That is the way that I see it as well. If you can't take the heat get out the kitchen,or in this case get off the bus. This is the way that I feel,if you don't agree with me that is cool.

 

BusOperator3319: Nobody has ever died from being spit on. Chances are very slim that you can catch a disease,all depends on where the spit lands of course.

 

I am on the 8006 list and to be honest with you I am more concerned with more important things such as getting into a serious accident,having somebody slip and fall on the bus, a passenger having a heart attack on the bus,those situations are potentially life threatening.

 

Once while listening to my scanner at home I heard a B/O tell console that he needs to go out of service because a passenger triggered his IBS(Irritable Bowel Syndrome)

 

I know that isn't something to joke about it but a minute later one of the supervisors says to the other one over the radio that at home his wife triggers his IBS,lol.

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This is just gross...If someone spit on me I would at the very least want to go home and take a shower.....I would not want to even drive the bus back to the depot....end of story....People don't respect anything or anyone these days!! But lord help the person that chooses to spit on me.....partly cloudy with a chance of knuckles is all i am going to say.

 

ooo and I spit back!!

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That is the way that I see it as well. If you can't take the heat get out the kitchen,or in this case get off the bus. This is the way that I feel,if you don't agree with me that is cool.

 

BusOperator3319: Nobody has ever died from being spit on. Chances are very slim that you can catch a disease,all depends on where the spit lands of course.

 

I am on the 8006 list and to be honest with you I am more concerned with more important things such as getting into a serious accident,having somebody slip and fall on the bus, a passenger having a heart attack on the bus,those situations are potentially life threatening.

 

Once while listening to my scanner at home I heard a B/O tell console that he needs to go out of service because a passenger triggered his IBS(Irritable Bowel Syndrome)

 

I know that isn't something to joke about it but a minute later one of the supervisors says to the other one over the radio that at home his wife triggers his IBS,lol.

This is why most Bus Operators choose the Express over the Local Trash the People with no class
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people don't think of spitting on someone being an assault, because it doesn't involve a fist or a foot.... but someone else's saliva can be far more harmful in the long term than any person's kick or punch....

 

I knew of a kid that spit directly in another kid's eye... kid came back to school w/ an eye patch, ended up permanently blind in that eye....

 

hell, I've been spat at, on the train, but it didn't come close to hitting me; guy got pissed that I was the only person on that particular (subway) car that didn't give him "some change"... yeh, some homeless guy.... was his way of sending a message, I guess.... I didn't bother confrontin him b/c what's to stop him from spittin @ me again.. and landing... and me havin to go to the hospital or w/e to get checked out... didn't/don't know who the f*** has what these days... and quite frankly, seeing what I saw happened when I was in junior high school (kid, well grown man now that ended up blind), I aint want that to be me....

 

 

So, no debate from me about b/o's or whoever, taking a prolonged leave due to gettin spat on... even if it doesn't touch flesh, shit can be, and often is traumatizing....

 

especially if you're not in a particular position at that specific moment to rip his tongue out from his throat and wring it around his charmin neck....

 

but I digress....

 

Excellent point. Bodily fluids can be just as/if not more harmful than the actual punch. I too wouldn't wish that kind of harm on anyone.

 

About the bus partitions, I feel that is what b/os really need. T/os have cabs that keeps them isolated from the general public. So why can't b/os have the same thing? I would feel better that the asswipe would have to reach around it to get to me first if that person was totally derranged. Cameras only takes an after shot which also does nothing if it doesn't record the whole event.

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